The present invention relates in general to handling elongated heavy loads on shop floors and in warehouses and more particularly concerns handling such elongated loads as 5-to-15-foot-long drums, rollers, rolls of material and the like. Compact apparatus according to the invention handles these loads while turning about very small radii. The apparatus is relatively inexpensive and easy to make, is rugged and facilitates handling these loads.
According to a typical prior art approach, a tow dolly pulls an elongated carrier frame with rear wheels and a front trailer hitch connection (to a tow dolly) mounted on a high transverse beam at the front end of the carrier frame. The hitch typically comprises a downwardly extending stub shaft at the forward center of the trailer frame. The tow dolly is a self propelled vehicle with three or four wheels and a rear lift for lifting its hitch connection into engagement with the carrier frame hitch and raising the front end of the carrier frame off the ground for moving a load.
It is an important object of the present invention to reduce the overall geometric envelope of apparatus of the class described.
It is a further object of the invention to reduce turning radii for movement of elongated loads consistent with the preceding object.
It is a further object of the invention to provide economic apparatus consistent with one or both of the preceding objects.
It is a further object of the invention to achieve one or more of the preceding objects while efficiently utilizing the apparatus when both carrying and not carrying a load.
It is a further object of the invention to provide ease of interchangeability of apparatus parts consistent with one or more of the preceding objects.